Blake holds things together for Indians

He may not be in the spotlight, but Blake's consistency spurs Indians to first place

Chris Beaven

No sections of Jacobs Field bear his name. National magazines do
not feature him on their cover. He doesn’t even lead the team in a major
statistical category.

But anyone looking for the glue helping to hold the Indians together needs
to look in the direction of Casey Blake.

The versatile Blake has settled back in at third base and is one of the
reasons the Indians share first place in the American League’s Central
Division.

“He’s been obviously one of our more consistent players, one of our most
selfless players and one of our strongest leaders,” General Manager Mark
Shapiro said Wednesday.

Blake, coming off a recent 26-game hitting streak, is hitting .279 with 10
home runs and 38 RBIs. His 18 doubles lead the team, but in the triple-crown
categories Blake can be found below several other teammates.

What Blake offers, though, goes beyond numbers.

“One thing’s always been evident is he’s a great athlete and a good
teammate, and he’s willing to do anything for the team,” Manager Eric Wedge
said.

That means Blake is willing to hit anywhere in the lineup and play in the
field anywhere he can.

Offensively, he has 36 starts in the two hole, a dozen down in the bottom
half of the order, and even a game batting cleanup. He sees plenty of
pitches to make him an ideal No. 2 hitter and has enough pop to hit in the
middle of the lineup.

His defensive versatility allowed the Indians to move him from third base to
the outfield two years ago. He smoothly made the transition and also played
some first base.

But when heralded prospect Andy Marte struggled at third base and then
suffered an injury, the Indians turned to Blake.

“He’s played as well, if not better, than he did two years ago,” Shapiro
said of Blake’s defense.

“That’s the reason we made sure he had so many reps at third in spring
training,” Wedge said.

Blake made a couple of nice stops in Wednesday’s 10-6 win over the Phillies.

“I enjoy making plays in the field and picking up the pitcher when I can,”
Blake said.

Blake gained plenty of attention with his career-long hitting streak, the
longest in the majors this season and tied for seventh-best in club history.

It ended Monday. Blake said it was tough on him mentally as it wore on.

“It was always in the back of your mind,” he said.

Wednesday, though, Blake was relaxed and hitting the ball well, going
2-for-5. His two-run single in the sixth, after the Phillies intentionally
walked Grady Sizemore to face Blake, gave the Indians the lead for good and
got an eight-run inning rolling.

Blake has hit in 37 of his last 41 games, but he does not get consumed with
his numbers.

“I just want to be consistent for the ballclub, both offensively and
defensively,” he said. “I just want to help this team and be a good player
for these guys.”